Minister for EU Affairs Ömer Çelik held a joint press conference with British Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Alan Duncan on Thursday.
“We stand in solidarity, and discussed issues such as Islamophobia and anti-Semitism. Daesh is one of the greatest troubles facing mankind,” said Çelik.
Duncan spoke of Islamophobia as unacceptable and reiterated the rights of Muslims.
“We believe that these difficulties are overcome by proportionate and reasonable measures. Like you, I also regret that the Cyprus negotiations did not reach a resolution. We know the positive approach of Mr. Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu,” Duncan said.
“Regarding the EU matter, we are trying to clarify the details. We believe Islam is very important. There are 3 million Muslims in the United Kingdom. Throughout my life, I have defended supporting Muslims. Just as other citizens, they too have equal rights. We condemn racist attitudes toward them, and such approaches are never acceptable. This is my fifth visit to Turkey, and I am sure it will not be my last,” he added.
Çelik slammed German comments on stopping the expansion of a customs union between Turkey and the EU.
Çelik said one country could not dictate the policy of the EU, and referred to German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s comments as “unfortunate.”
“It must be made very clear that one European country does not determine EU policy. It was a statement made by those who want to weaken the EU. Turkey may have problems with EU countries, but these problems should not be reduced to the countries themselves,” said Çelik.
“It causes a change in the strength of the union. The EU commission should not allow the problem between Germany and Turkey to reflect on the EU. This is contrary to the basic mechanism of the EU,” he continued.
Çelik stated that the customs union deal was about free trade, and should be beneficial to all parties.
“The customs union is not something we unilaterally want. This is about increasing free trade. It’s being treated as if updating the customs union is a prize and gift to Turkey. We want to continue if this progresses as a win-win deal,” the EU affairs minister said.
“We will implement the decisions we take within our Cabinet of Ministers concerning the customs union, which our Ministry of Economy is interested in. We have no rush regarding the customs union. This deal was supposed to be accelerated. No agreement was reached during the Obama period. It could not be reached during Trump’s period either,” he said.
